Export orders expanded by 10.8 percent annually last month, the highest year-on-year growth in two years, thanks to robust demand for chips used in artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing (HPC) devices mainly from Nvidia Corp, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said yesterday. It also outpaced the ministry’s upper estimate of 5.88 percent annual growth.
Export orders rose from US$42.49 billion in April last year to US$47.1 billion last month, while export orders dropped by 0.1 percent from US$47.16 billion on a monthly basis, the ministry said.
The ministry said it expects the growth momentum to carry into this month and export orders to rise between 1.8 percent and 6.2 percent annually to between US$46.5 billion and US$48.5 billion, as AI chip demand remains vigorous.
Photo: CNA
“April’s stronger performance and the growth prospects for May gave us higher confidence that export orders in the second quarter would return to growth on an annual basis, as compared with our initial estimate at the beginning of this year,” Department of Statistics Director Huang Yu-ling (黃于玲) said via telephone.
Electronic products orders soared by 22.7 percent year-on-year to US$17.1 billion last month, primarily fueled by robust demand for foundry services, chip distribution and printed circuit boards for AI-related applications and HPC devices, the ministry said. Orders from the US grew at the fastest pace of 35.8 percent.
Orders for information and communications technology products last month rose 8.4 percent annually to US$13.05 billion, backed by increased server orders on resilient demand for AI applications and cloud-based devices. Orders from Malaysia grew the highest at 53.3 percent, as manufacturers shifted production from China to the Southeast Asian country amid the US-China technology dispute.
Optoelectronics products orders expanded 13.5 percent annually to US$1.66 billion last month, attributable to increases in orders for TV panels and optoelectronic cameras. TV panel prices have also seen sustained high levels.
The price of 65-inch TV panels is to climb 1.1 percent month-on-month, or US$2 per unit, this month, extending price hikes over the past few months, market researcher TrendForce Corp (集邦科技) said yesterday.
Three major traditional sectors returned to growth last month, driven by more marked restocking demand.
Orders for basic metals, mainly for steel, rose by 3.5 percent year-on-year to US$2.23 billion last month mainly due to restocking demand, the ministry said.
Plastics product orders increased 4.2 percent annually to US$1.61 billion on inventory buildup demand, the ministry said, adding that prices were supported by higher raw material prices.
Petrochemical products orders rose by 8 percent year-on-year last month to US$1.54 billion, as OPEC increased global crude oil prices by 5.9 percent year-on-year, the ministry said.
Machinery orders shrank 3.4 percent year-on-year to US$1.59 billion last month, because increases in equipment spending from semiconductor companies were still not enough to offset the broader weakness in capacity expansion amid a slow global economic recovery, the ministry said.
TARIFFS: The global ‘panic atmosphere remains strong,’ and foreign investors have continued to sell their holdings since the start of the year, the Ministry of Finance said The government yesterday authorized the activation of its NT$500 billion (US$15.15 billion) National Stabilization Fund (NSF) to prop up the local stock market after two days of sharp falls in reaction to US President Donald Trump’s new import tariffs. The Ministry of Finance said in a statement after the market close that the steering committee of the fund had been given the go-ahead to intervene in the market to bolster Taiwanese shares in a time of crisis. The fund has been authorized to use its assets “to carry out market stabilization tasks as appropriate to maintain the stability of Taiwan’s
STEEP DECLINE: Yesterday’s drop was the third-steepest in its history, the steepest being Monday’s drop in the wake of the tariff announcement on Wednesday last week Taiwanese stocks continued their heavy sell-off yesterday, as concerns over US tariffs and unwinding of leveraged bets weighed on the market. The benchmark TAIEX plunged 1,068.19 points, or 5.79 percent, to 17,391.76, notching the biggest drop among Asian peers as it hit a 15-month low. The decline came even after the government on late Tuesday authorized the NT$500 billion (US$15.2 billion) National Stabilization Fund (國安基金) to step in to buoy the market amid investors’ worries over tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump. Yesterday’s decline was the third-steepest in its history, trailing only the declines of 2,065.87 points on Monday and
TARIFF CONCERNS: The chipmaker cited global uncertainty from US tariffs and a weakening economic outlook, but said its Singapore expansion remains on track Vanguard International Semiconductor Corp (世界先進), a foundry service provider specializing in producing power management and display driver chips, yesterday withdrew its full-year revenue projection of moderate growth for this year, as escalating US tariff tensions raised uncertainty and concern about a potential economic recession. The Hsinchu-based chipmaker in February said revenues this year would grow mildly from last year based on improving supply chain inventory levels and market demand. At the time, it also anticipated gradual quarter revenue growth. However, the US’ sweeping tariff policy has upended the industry’s supply chains and weakened economic prospects for the world economy, it said. “Now
An employment discrimination lawsuit against contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) might soon be expanded after a hearing in a federal court in San Jose, California, on Tuesday to add 15 plaintiffs to the case. According to a court document, the lawsuit, which was refiled in November last year as a form of a class action with 13 plaintiffs in California, wants to add 15 plaintiffs from Arizona, where TSMC is building up its wafer fab capacity. TSMC first committed between 2020 and last year to invest US$65 billion in three advanced wafer fabs in Arizona. It then pledged an
RSS